Giancarlo Stanton goes Monster hunting

BOSTON -- Much to the dismay of batting practice gawkers -- a legion that includes Boston outfielder Cody Ross -- Giancarlo Stanton has re-designed his regimen to hit pretty much everything to right, and line drives at that.

But Stanton confessed that he took a few pokes at Fenway Park's fabled Green Monster when several Marlins showed up for a round of "early" B.P. on Tuesday.

"I let a few loose," Stanton said, chuckling. "There were a few. You're not fully warmed up in early B.P. but I still got a few out. It's cool. You don't need to necessarily get under the ball. It's high. But you don't have to change anything to get it up over that thing."

Ross, by the way, was upset that Stanton wasn't aiming for the fences during batting practice when the Red Sox were in Miami. Ross had talked his Red Sox teammates into hanging out in the dugout when the Marlins took B.P., just to see Stanton. When Stanton kept hitting opposite-field line drives, Ross yelled out for him to give the ball a jolt.

Stanton obliged and hit one over the Red Grooms sculpture.

The Marlins could use a real home run or two right now, from Stanton or anyone else. The Marlins have hit only five home runs over the past 12 games (10 losses). The power isn't the only thing missing from their attack. They've stolen only one base as a team during the stretch.

Individually, take a look at what their core players have done since June 5 when the Marlins began their tumble: